\ 2405 
J5 
3py 1 



Digitized by the Internet Archive 
in 2011 with funding from 
The Library of Congress 



http://www.archive.org/details/];eportoficeicemo01unit 



sc:^^^ 



No. 93. 



^' 



%■ 



i>s 



\ \'- 




REPORT 



OF 



ICE AND ICE MOVEMENTS 



IN THE 



NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAK 



ENSIGN HUGH RODMAN, U. S. N. 



UNDER THE DIKECTTON OK 



capt. henry r picking, u. s. n, 



HYDROGRAPHER. 



WASHINGTON : 

GOVERNMENT PKINTlNti OFFICE. 
1890. 






No. 93. 




REPORT 



OP 



ICE AND ICE MOVEMENTS 



IX THE 



l^ORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN, 

BY 

ENSIGN HUGH RODMAN, U. S. N. 

UNDER THE DIRECTION OF 

capt. henry r picking, u, s. n 

HYDROGRAPHER. 



WASHINGTON : 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 
1890. 



y 






Oft i ...08 



INTRODUCTION. 

ThB subject of ice and ice movements is one to which the Hydro- 
graphic Office has given special attention, mainly through its branches 
at Boston and l^ew York, where reports are regularly received and 
transmitted to the meteorological division of this Office ; here the in- 
formation is carefully tabulated, and appears on the monthly pilot- 
chart of the l!^orth Atlantic Ocean, on which the ice for the previous 
mouth is plotted, and a course laid down to clear it. This course, though 
some 200 miles longer than the shortest possible route (close to Cape 
Eace), is the most ecomical one that can be followed, not only clearing 
the ice region, but also avoiding that greatest menace to navigation, fog. 

At first these precautionary measures were deemed excessive by 
many captains, but the number is notably decreasing annually, and 
their wisdom is becoming apparent in the gradual approximation to 
the pilot-chart routes by the trans- Atlantic steamer lines. 

As the season advances, the force of the Boston and 'New York branch 
offices is greatly occupied in furnishing information on this important 
subject to captains, for whom, on the eve of sailing, all the latest ice 
reports are plotted on the charts, and the managers of the steam- ship 
lines are supplied with copies of all ice reports received. 

The opening of navigation in the St. Lawrence Eiver and Gulf is 
an important matter in the iJ^ew York market, and the subsequent 
movement of the ice is a subject of great interest to those wishing to 
charter vessels for that trade. ■" 

The Office has made every effort to collect the latest and most reliable 
•data concerning the movement of ice in the vicinity of the Grand Banks, 
and the officer in charge of the Boston branch, in a previous report, states 
that the marked decrease in the supply of information on the subject was 
due to the fact of the steamer lines adopting the routes recommended 
by this Office. 

It is hardly necessary to dwell upon the importance of the ice prob- 
lem, or the benefit to be derived from a thorough understanding of it; 
and, in order that the maritime community might better appreciate the 
danger, and be aided in intelligently studying the best means of avoid- 
ing it, at the request of the Hydrographer, Ensign Hugh Rodman, U. 
S. Navy of the division of marine meteorology of this Office, was de- 
tailed bj' the bureau, and orders issued by the honorable Secretary of 
the Navy to proceed to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and St. John's, New- 
foundland, and make a careful and thorough report on the subject, col- 
lecting the most reliable and authentic data, and enlisting the most 



extensive co-operation. Special ice forms were prepared and distributed 
to the Newfoundland sealers, who are the first to sight the heavy Arc- 
tic field ice; to the whalers of the northern fleet; to a number of station- 
ary observers in Newfoundland and Labrador, and to all, in fact, who 
sight the ice or spend the season in the ice regions, from which, no 
doubt, the greatest benefit in the future will be derived, as it goes with- 
out saying that the greater the number of reports received the more ac- 
curate the resulting predictiops. 

The accompanying report by Ensign Eodman refers more particularly 
to ice as an obstruction to transatlantic navigation, and for this reason 
many other interesting points are merely touched upon, others are be- 
ing more carefully elaborated, and an effort is making to trace the ice- 
flow from beginning to end. ' 

The appreciation of the maritime community for the report of ice 
movements in Bering Sea and the Arctic basin (U. S. Hydrographic 
Office publication No. 92) led the Hydrographer to endeavor to issue a 
similar report for the North Atlantic Ocean, the outcome of which w^aa 
the accompanying report. 

This Office is especially indebted to Oapt. William Maxwell, K. N., 
Halifax, Nova Scotia, for his courtesy to its representatives in furnishing 
most of the data in the appended forms relative to the opening and 
closing of ports and for other valuable suggestions and assistance; also 
to Mr. J. T. Nevill, inspector of light-houses, St. John's, Newfoundland, 
through whose kindness the keepers will, in future, keep a regular form, 
which will be forwarded to us as soon as filled in order that our pub- 
lished information may be as complete as possible. 

Henry F. PiCKma, 
Captain, U. 8. Wavy, Hydrographer. 

U. S. Hydrogkaphio Office, 

Washington, May, 1890. 



ICE AND ICE MOVEMENTS IN THE NORTH ATLANTIC. 



In the investigation of ice as an obstruction to navigation in other 
than Arctic waters it will only be necessary to dwell briefly upon its 
formation in that region, and to follow it in its course out of the Arctic 
basin to the southward until it finally disappears off the Banks and 
along the course of the Gulf Stream. Not that all ice-fields have their 
origin there, for the coasts of Newfoundland and Labrador and the 
Gulf of St. Lawrence are prolific in their supplies, and send out yearly 
miles of ice-fields, which cause much delay and danger, block ports, 
and interfere seriously with the deep-sea and coasting trade. Many 
names are given to different kinds of ice, often the same kind is called 
by different names, and to the uninitiated this would be confusing, so 
only the ordinary terms will be used, which explain themselves. In 
order to understand the ice-drift a knowledge of currents, winds, and 
tides are very necessary as well as a general idea of the contour of the 
coasts along its paths. 

In deep water the currents can be easily traced and plotted on charts, 
but as the shore line is approached they often become very erratic, and 
a local knowledge is necessary before these peculiarities can be fullj^ 
understood. 

No ocean current should be considered as always being within the 
same limit throughout its entire length, like a river inclosed within its 
banks, like the lower Hudson for instance, which never overflows its 
banks, but a variation must be allowed to all of them. The limits of 
the Gulf Stream can be defined and remain about the same each year 
and month between Florida and Cuba; its strength may vary at times 
even here but its limits do not, while north of Cape Hatteras its northern 
and southern limits vary considerably, both annually and after severe 
gales of wind, especially those blowing at a great angle to its axis. In 
the same way the Arctic current must vary in its limits. 

There are really two currents which transport ice, the Arctic and 
East Greenland ; the latter, flowing southwesterly along tlie East Green- 
land coast, rounds Cape Farewell, flows northwesterly to about latitude 
(VS^ in Davis Strait, turns upon itself and unites with the regular cur- 
rent flowing south through Davis Strait; tliience it sweeps the coast 
of Labrador, spreading to the eastward in its course until about latitude 
52^ is reached, when the eastern edge turns towards the eastward, a 
small part finds its way through the Straits of Belle Isle into the Gulf 

5 



6 

of St. Lawrence, while the main body of the stream, continuing to the 
southward, rounds Newfoundland and forms an inshore current as far 
south as Florida. 

It will be noticed that off the Banks the axis of the Gulf Stream and 
that of the Arctic current are nearly at right angles, which will cause a 
maximum variation in the northern limit of the Gulf Stream depending 
upon the force of the Arctic current as it may be augmented or dimin- 
ished by the wind's influence, and this variation will be greatest when 
the Gulf Stream is at its annual southern limit. The line of demarka- 
tion must at all times be formed by the resultant of the two forces de- 
pending upon the relative strengths of the currents. 

Many suppose that near the line of meeting the Arctic current sinks 
under the Gulf Stream, so that the northern surface current of the Gulf 
Stream flows easterly over a lower cold current setting to the southward 
and westward. This would appear to be true from the path ot many 
bergs, and will be analyzed more fully when the drift of the bergs is 
considered. 

Along the entire coasts of Labrador and Newfoundland and in the 
Gulf of St. Lawrence the shore currents are very confusing and variable. 
Add to this tidal influences and the force and direction of the wind, 
and the problem becomes one which can onlj^ be solved by an extensive 
local experience. Even then there are often such variations that all 
knowledge fails, and hundreds of vessels have been lost through lack 
of knowledge on the part of the best local pilots. It is unnecessary to 
go into detail in this work of the currents in each locality, but rather to 
give a general idea which can apply to the subject as a whole. 

BERGS. 

The bergs which annually appear in the North Atlantic have their 
origin almost exclusively in West Greenland. Indeed, this is the great 
berg factory, and although a few may round Cape Farewell from the 
Spitzbergen Sea, and a few come from Frobisher Sound and Hudson 
Strait, we may still give Greenland the credit of furnishing at least eighty 
per cent, of all that are made that come to the southward. The interior 
of Greenland is a solid mass of ice, covered by snow, while a narrow 
belt around the coast is the only part uncovered. Extending from the 
interior through this belt are the numerous ice fjords or glaciers which^ 
including large and small, number in the hundreds. These range in 
width from a few hundred feet to several miles, and from 50 to 1,500 
feet in thickness. All of these glaciers are making their way towards the 
sea, and as their ends are forced out into the water from the pressure be- 
hind they are broken off and set adrift as bergs. The rate of move- 
ment of the glaciers is variously estimated, and of course varies in the 
different ones and at different seasons, but from observations made 
they have been known to advance at the rate of 47 feet a day. Some 
observers have attempted to connect this rate with the amount of water 



discharged by the subglacial stream, but ia Greenland it has not 
proved satisfactory. 

Once the glacier extends into deep water pieces are broken off by 
their buoyancy, aided possibly by currents and by the brittleness of the 
.ice. This process is called calving; the size of the pieces set adrift varies 
greatly, but a berg from 60 to 100 feet to the top of its walls, whose spires 
or pinnacles may reach from 200 to 250 feet in height and from 300 
to 500 yards in length, is considered an average size berg in the Arctic. 
These measurements apply to the part above water, which is about one- 
eighth or one-ninth of the whole mass. Many authors give the depth 
under water as being from eight to nine times the height above ; this 
is incorrect, and measurements above and below water should be re- 
ferred to mass and not to height. It is even i^ossible to have a berg as 
high out of water as it is deep below the surface, for if we imagine a 
large, solid lump, of any regular shape, which has a very small sharp 
high pinnacle in the center, the height above water can easily be equal 
to the depth below. An authentic case on record is that of a berg 
grounded in the Strait of Belle Isle in 16 fathoms of water that had a 
thin spire about 100 feet in height. 

Many estimates have been made of the number of pieces, or bergs, 
that each glacier puts out on an average each year, and it is given at 
from 10 to 100, while the mass might average 250,000,000,000 cubic feet. 

From observations made on a particular glacier the following figures 
will show its output: Breadth, 18,400 feet 5 depth, 940 feet; advance 
per day, 47 feet during summer season. This would give about 
200,000,000,000 cubic feet a year, as the product of an average size ice 
fjord, which, allowing 5 pounds a day for each person in the United 
States, would last over one hundred years. 

Bergs are made all the year round, but the greater number during the 
summer season, so that thousands are set adrift each year. 

Once adrift in the Arctic they find their way into the Arctic current 
and begin their journey to the southward. It is not an unobstructed 
drift, but one attended with many stoppages and mishaps. Many 
ground in the Arctic basin and break up there; others reach the shores 
of Labrador, where from one end to the other they continually ground 
and float; some break up and disappear entirely, while others get safely 
past and reach the. Grand Banks. A glance at the chart will show how 
the set of the Arctic current is on the shore of Labrador, which shunts 
it finally a little to the eastward. This whole coast is cut up by numer- 
ous islands, bays and headlands, shoals and reefs, which makes the 
journey of all drift a long one, and adds greatly to the destruction of 
the bergs by stoppages and causing them to break up. 

It must not be supposed that all bergs made in any one season find 
their way south during the following one, for only a small percentage of 
them ever reach transatlantic routes. So manj^ delays attend their 
journey, and so irregular and erratic is it, that manj' bergs seen in any 



8 

one season may have been made several seasons before. If bergs on 
their calving at once drifted to the southward, and met with no ob- 
structions, their journey of about 1,200 to 1,500 miles would occupy 
from 4 to 5 months, reckoning the drift of the Arctic current at 10 miles 
a day, which may be making it too little. Then if bergs were liberated 
principally in July and August they should reach transatlantic routes 
m December and January, while we know this to be the rare exception. 
It is then seen what an important bearing the shores of Labrador have 
in arresting tlieir flow, when it is known that bergs are generally most 
plentiful in the late spring and early summer months off the Banks. 

It should not be supposed that all bergs follow the same course when 
set adrift from their parent glaciers, for, like floating bodies at the 
head of a river, some will go direct to the mouth, others will go but a 
short distance and lodge, others still will accomplish half the journey 
and remain until another freshet again floats them, so that in the end the 
debris will be composed in part of that of several years' production. 

Bergs, when first liberated on the west Greenland shore, are out of 
the strongest sweep of the southerly current, and they may take some 
months to find their way out of Davis Strait, while again another may 
at once drift into the current and move unobstructed until demolished 
in the Gulf Stream. The difference in time cu two bergs in reaching a 
low latitude which were set adrift the same day may cover a period of 
one or two years. 

Field ice also offers an obstruction to bergs, and a close season in the 
Arctic may prevent their liberation to a great extent, though, from their 
deep submersion, they act as ice-plows and aid materially in breaking 
up the vast fields of ice which so often close the Arctic Basin. 

Ice-fields are more affected by wind than bergs, as will be shown 
hereafter, while bergs owe their drift almost entirely to current, so that 
they will often be noticed forcing their way through immense fields of 
heavy ice and going directly to windward. Advantage is taken of this 
by vessels in ice-fields, which often moor to bergs and are towed for 
miles through ice through which they could not otherwise make any 
headway. This is accomplished by sinking an ice-anchor into them and 
using a strong tow line, and as the berg advances open water is left to 
leeward while the loose ice floats past on both sides. For the same rea- 
son vessels, when beset by field ice, run from the lee of one berg to that 
of another, as leads may offer themselves. 

All ice is brittle, especially that in bergs, and it is wonderful how 
little it takes to accomplish their destruction. A blow of an ax will at 
times split them, and the rfeport of a gun, by concussion, will accom- 
plish the same end. They are more apt to break up in warm weather 
than cold, and whalers and sealers note this before landing on them, 
when an anchor is to be planted or fresh water to be obtained. On the 
coast of Labrador in July and August, when it is packed with bergs, 
the noise of rupture is often deafening, and those experienced in ice give 
them a wide berth. ' ' 



Whea tliej" are frozen the temperature is very low, so that when 
their surface is exposed to a thawiug temperature the tension of the 
exterior and interior is very diflereut, making them not unlike a Prince 
Eupert's drop. Then, too, during the day water made by melting finds 
its way into the crevices, freezes, and hence expands, and, acting like a 
wedge, forces the berg into fragments. 

The effect of a change in . temperature of the outside can be readily 
shown by the following experiment : 

Take a large block of ice, frozen at a temperature of 5° F., and sud- 
denly immerse it in water above the temperature of 90° F., and the block 
will immediately go to pieces, making a noise that can be heard several 
yards distant. This shows the ice is not only destroyed by slow melt- 
ing from the outside but by rupture, thus bringing a greater surface in 
contact with warmer water, which promotes melting. This is what hap- 
pens to bergs when exposed to a warmer atmosphere, or when brought 
in contact with the Gulf Stream. If a large berg would remain intact 
and not go to pieces, several years might elapse before it would melt, 
and they would be ever present in transatlantic routes, and might at 
times reach well over towards the European coast. 

By some it is supposed that bergs contain organic substances which 
are frozen in them, which promote melting by the radiation of the sun's 
heat, but this is not clearly demonstrated. 

They assume the greatest variety of shapes, from those approximating 
to some regular geometric figure to others crowned with spires, domes, 
minarets, and peaks, while others still are pierced by deep indenta- 
tions or caves. Small cataracts precipitate themselves from the large 
bergs, while from many icicles hang in clusters from every projecting 
ledge. They frequently have outlying spurs under water, which are as 
dangerous as any other sunken reefs. For this reason it is advisable 
for vessels to give them a wide berth, for there are a number of cases 
on record where vessels were seriously damaged by striking when ap- 
parently clear of the berg. Among these is that of the British steam- 
ship Nessmore, which ran into a berg in latitude 41° 50' N"., longitude 
52° W., and stove in her bows. On docking her a long score was found 
extending from abreast her fore-rigging all of the way aft, just above 
her keel. Four frames were broken and the plates were almost cut 
through. The ship evidently struck a projecting spur after her helm 
had been put over, as there was clear water between her and the berg 
after the first collision. 

It is best to go to windward of them, for ddbris broken off will gener- 
ally drift to leeward and open water be found to windward. 

There are examples without end where vessels have been seriously 
injured, if not lost, by bergs breaking up or turning over. Often they 
are so nicely balanced that the slightest melting of their surfaces causes 
a change in their center of gravity, when they are liable to capsize. In 
the same way if bergs nearly ifi the state of unstable equilibrium when 



10 

drifting with the current and their bottom grounds will frequently 
turn over and break to pieces. 

Many bergs, after leaving the 'boast of Labrador, where they are 
generally much reduced in size, find their way to the Newfoundland 
coast and ground there and on the edge of the Grand Banks, where their 
destruction continues. 

There are more ways than one of telling one's proximity to bergs, 
which, fortunately for vessels, make their presence known in all kinds 
of weather. 

On a clear day they can be seen at a long distance, owing to their 
brightness, and at night to their effulgence. During foggy weather 
they are seen through the fog by their apparent blackness, if such a term 
can be applied, though it is never safe to run at full speed in thick 
weather when in the vicinity of bergs, as many vessels have found to 
their cost. 

They can be detected by the echo from the whistle or fog-horn, and 
this point should be remembered and noted. By noting time between 
blast of whistle and return sound, the distance of the object can be 
found approximately, in feet, by multiplying by 550. 
- The presence of bergs is often made known by the noise of their 
breaking up and falling to pieces. Temperature is useful in indicating 
the presence of ice, though near the junction of the Arctic current and 
Gulf Stream great variations will always be found. If a berg be 
grounded, or if the surface liurrent be the stronger, water flowing past 
ice will be lowered in temperature and show its presence. To leeward 
of ice the atmospheric temperature is lowered, though like the temper- 
ature of water in ice regions it is subject to rapid changes. Change to 
a lower temperature, therefore, should serve as a warning, and a sharp 
lookout be kept, though it does not always follow that the change is 
caused by ice. 

FIELD ICE. 

Field ice is made from the Arctic to the shores of ^Newfoundland, and 
yearly leaves the shore to find its way into the path of commerce. Start- 
ing with the Arctic field ice and coming to the southward, we find this 
ice growing lighter, both in thickness and in quantity, until it disappears 
entirely. Ice made in the Arctic is heavier and has lived through a 
number of seasons. After the short summer in high latitudes ice be- 
gins to form on all open water, increasing several feet in thickness each 
season. Much of this remains north during the following summer, and 
though it melts to some extent it never entirely disappears, so that each 
succeeding winter adds to its thickness. 

This continues from year to year until it reaches 12 or 15 feet in thick- 
ness, often more. If it remained perfectly quiet it would be of uniform 
thickness, increasing with the latitude, but it is in a state of almost 
continual motion, often a very violent one, which causes it to raft and 



11 

pile until it becomes full of hummocks and other irregularities. Im- 
mense fields are detached from the shore and from other fields, and 
under the influence of winds, currents, and tides are set in motion and 
kept continually drifting from place to place 5 after a snow, thaw, or 
piling the whole becomes cemented together into solid pieces, when un- 
der the influence of a low temperature. The space of open water be- 
tween the fields becomes frozen, joining smaller fields, and making a 
solid pack which will remain so until the elements again break it to 
pieces. Along the shores from headland to headland the bays and in- 
lets often remain solid for years, almost invariably through the Arctic 
winter, but in Baffin Bay and Davis Strait open water can be found at 
intervals all the year round. 

Ice becomes rafted in a variety of ways. If two fields are adrift the 
one to win^dward will drift down on the one to leeward ; the one which 
is rougher on its surface gives the wind abetter hold, and drifts the faster 5 
fields may be impelled towards each other by winds from contrary 
directions. Ice that is secure to the shore is rafted on its seaward edge 
from contact with that which is adrift. Fields in drifting often have 
a turning motion, which is caused by contrary currents, or one variable 
in strength at diflerent places, or by the friction of a field coming in 
contact with another field afloat or one attached to the shore. This 
rotary motion is especially dangerous when a vessel finds itself between 
two fields. A heavy gale will break up the strongest fields at times and 
cause them to raft and form hummocks. 

Small fragments of bergs find themselves mingled with Aretic fields 
and become frozen fast. These, when liberated to the southward, are 
called growlers J and form low, dark, indigo-colored masses, which are just 
awash and rounded on top like a whale's back. They are very danger- 
ous when in ice fields which have become loose enough to permit th& 
passage of vessels through them, and should always be lookedforj they 
can be seen apparent!}" rising and sinking as the sea breaks over them. 

During the spring and summer months the bergs, aided by a rise of 
temperature, so cut up and weaken the ice fields that much ice is 
loosened and begins drifting out of the Arctic Basin. This is joined by 
that brought from the Spitzbergen Sea by the East Greenland current, 
amalgamates in a fashion, whence it flows down the eastern coast of 
North America, reaching Cape Chidley about October or November. 
By this time the remaining ice in tlie Arctic is being cemented into solid 
fields, while the ice cap is being daily extended to the southward. As 
fast as fields are detached, the open water freezes, and tbese masses 
are forced to the southward and can not rejoin thesolid pack. With a 
westerly wind ice formed in Hudson Strait and adjacent waters is swept 
out and joins the Arctic ice, difl'ering from it only in being a little 
lighter. 

Ice begins to form at Cape Cbidley about the middle of October, at 
Belle Isle about November 1, and by the middle of November or 1st 



12 

of December, the whole coast is solidly frozen. It should be stated here 
that the dates given are approximate and vary from year to year, 
marked exceptions being on record to many of them, so they represent 
-averages. 

The string of ice along the coast of Labrador extends from headland 
"to headland, including the outlying islands, and starting from the heads 
of the bays, works its way out to seaward, forming by the middle of 
December an impassable barrier to the shore which will probably not 
be permanently broken until the latter part of April. This ice varies 
in thickness from 12 feet at the northern extreme to 3 or 4 feet at the 
southern. During the entire winter the Arctic drift is finding its way 
down the coast, and is being continually reinforced by fields broken 
from the Labrador ice. These continue to the southward in the Arctic 
current on an average of about 10 miles a day, reaching Belle Isle be- 
tween the middle of January and the middle of February. 

The best example on record of a continued drift from the Arctic is that 
of Captain Tyson. On October 14, 1871, he and a party of nineteen 
others were separated from the United States surveying ship, Polaris, 
in latitude 77° or 78° N., just south of Littleton Island, and being un- 
able to again reach the ship, remained on the floe and accomplished one 
•of the most wonderful journeys on record. After a drift of over 1,500 
miles, fraught with danger from beginning to end, not only from star- 
vation and exposure to cold, but with death a number of times from the 
numerous gales encountered, supporting themselves by hunting and 
fishing, they were picked up about six months later, April 30, 1872, by 
the Tigress, a sealing steamer from Newfoundland, near the Strait of 
Belle Isle, in latitude 53° 35' 'N., and carried safely into port. No better 
example could be given than this of the drift ice from the Arctic Basin, 
illustrating, as it does, not only the journey to the southward, but the 
many vicissitudes to which ice is subjected before reaching a low latitude. 

Much delay will be caused by winds from the southward of west, as 
field ice is affected more by wind than current. The prevailing wind 
and weather will influence the drift very greatly. Strong northerly or 
northwest winds will increase its speed, contrary winds the reverse. 
The string of shore ice keeps the northern ice off" the coast and in the 
current. At times westerly winds will also send the Labrador ice off 
the coast and leave it entirely clear, but this does not happen often. 
Still the outer Labrador ice is constantly being added to the Arctic 
flow. Frequently the bays remain frozen over until June, again, thi^y 
are cleared some years in April, making a large variation. During the 
drift the wind from northwest to southwest will clear the ice off the 
coast and leave a line of open water, but the ice will be set on the coast 
by a northeast wind, and be rafted and piled. The appearance of the 
ice when it reaches Belle Isle and to the southward, would be a fair in- 
dication of the weather it had encountered on its way down, the rougher 
the ice the more severe the weather, and vice versa. This floating ice 



13 

string extends approximately 200 miles off sbore, in the latitude of 
Cape Harrison, and spreads more during its drift, though narrower 
farther north. One small stream finds its way through the Strait of 
Belle Isle, while the greater part continues to the northern limit of the 
Gulf Stream. The shores of Newfoundland and Gulf of St. Lawrence 
are full of ice, frozen there, by the middle of January, and are o])cned 
or closed by a favorable or adverse wind. Navigation in the river St. 
Lawrence is closed about the middle of November and does not open 
until about May. A wind from northwest to southwest wdl clear the 
eastern coast of Newfoundland, while the Gulf of St. Lawrence may 
remain full of ice until the 1st of May. Even after this date much ice 
is found in the Gulf until July, and by August or earlier the field ice is 
replaced in the Strait of Belle Isle by bergs. 

In the bight from Cape Bauld to Fogo Island a string of ice is often 
found joining these points, hemming in the shore for weeks at a time. 

With each northwest or westerly wind the ice is cleared off' the New- 
foundland coast, except from some of the deeper bays, and carried out 
to sea, and frequently before the Arctic and Labrador ice has passed 
Belle Isle the Newfoundland ice has found its way in the track of trans- 
atlantic vessels as far as 45° N. In the same way the Labrador ice 
sometimes precedes the Arctic ice, while all may arrive at nearly the 
same time. Ice fields often lose their identity, as coming from any one 
particular place, by the constant intermingling on its southern journey 
with ice made in a lower latitude. 

Young slob ice may be found around the coast of Newfoundland from 
December until April, some of which is heavy enough to prevent the 
liassage of vessels other than those specially built to go through it. 

Ice leaving the Gulf of St. Lawrence flows south through Cabot 
Strait, drifts southward with a few degrees of westing, its southern 
limit depending upon its thickness, strength of current, or prevailing 
wind, but often reaches Sable Island. This string of ice in 45° N. will 
vary from a few miles to 50 in width. This can be easily avoided by 
running to the southward and around it, or by shaping a course to clear 
it between ports of departure and destination. The southern coast of 
Newfoundland from Cape Ray to Cape Pine is generally clear of heavy 
field ice, though the extreme eastern and western ports are occasionally 
closed by it. Ice coming from the northward of Cape Race will round 
it, spreading to the westward, sometimes filling Trepassy, St. Mary's^ 
and Placentia Bays, especially with a southerly wind. 

There is no region affected by ice where its sudden appearance and 
disappearance is not noticed. A harbor or locality may be entirely free 
of ice — in a few hours a solid pack will be found ; and, on the other hand» 
a pack which has lasted for days will disappear in a few hours. All 
ice seems to have a motion within itself, as well as one of drift as a 
whole. Many instances are cited where two vessels have been jammed 
in a field within a few cable lengths of each other, and at the end of 



14 

several days be a number of miles apart, yet there had never been a 
time when free communication on foot over the ice could not be main- 
tained. In the same way vessels imprisoned in th^ ice often with a 
slight shift of wind find themselves freed with an open lead before them. 

Ice fields assume a variety of shapes depending upon the influence of 
winds and currents, and upon their shape on being set adrift. Those 
loosened in the Arctic meet with so many vicissitudes that they have 
entirely lost their original form when a low latitude is reached, while 
those from ^Newfoundland may remain approximately intact. Their 
extent is governed by the same rules, and varies from a few scattered 
pieces to several hundred miles in length. Suppose, for example, a field 
of Arctic ice 20 miles in diameter to be nearly circular when detached in 
latitude 70° N. This may be composed of pans from a few feet to half a 
mile in diameter, 10 to 15 feet in thickness, with a fairly smooth surface. 
As it comes to the southward it encounters a series of gales from different 
points of the compass, it is brought in contact with the Labrador ice 
string, and finds itself in places where the current is of unequal strength 
on its opposite sides. It will then be lengthened or compressed, mak- 
ing a long irregular strip, possibly scattered, or be rafted and tighter. 
During its journey ice formed at other points gets mixed with it, so that 
by the time it reaches Belle Isle, its shape will be very irregular, long 
tongues extending from the mass, one side very tight, the opposite 
loose and scattering. Bergs may have plowed their way through it, or 
it may have been divided by an island, or by a gale, so that it may 
assume any form. 

From off Belle Isle it finds its way south to the Gulf Stream, where 
no definite shape can be given it. In appearance, if heavy ice, it will 
be white, covered with snow, and visible at a long- distance; even in 
foggy weather it can often be seen for some distance when the fog is 
thickest. It is full of hummocks, audits surface is very uneven, blocks 
have been piled upon each other, others stood on end, and the whole 
mass will form an impenetrable field, through which vessels can not force 
their way. 

If the ice be lighter the pans will be smoother and more even, the 
angles ground down by friction and turned up at the edges like so many 
large pond lilies. If compact no water is seen, if loose wide leads may 
extend through the whole, or a little water be seen surrounding each 
cake. 

The appearance must decide whether a vessel is warranted in trj'-ing 
to force her way through. In a smooth sea, where doubt exists, should 
a vessel go dead slow into the mass, there will be but little danger in 
attempting it, and if too heavy, she can easily haul out. Often the 
weather edge is the heaviest from being rafted, when to leeward it may 
be scattering. An ice field will often form a good lee for riding out a 
gale of wind, as it will break the force of the sea. But care is neces- 
sary not to lie too close, for then the pans are often given such a force 
that they will stave in the bows of the strongest vessels. 



15 

The great difference then between Arctic ice and that made fartlier 
south is that the former takes several seasons to make, while the latter 
is made each season. Ice will form in open water in a cold calm night; 
in the latitude of St. John's, Newfoundland, it has formed 1 or 2 inches 
in thickness in the bays, and for 40 miles out to sea. Wherever 
it is protected for any length of time it will form several feet in thick- 
ness, though it is easily broken up by a heavy swell or strong wind. If 
the bay is open an off-shore wind soon empties it, but if full of islands 
it will take a much longer time. 

Naturally the ice is looser to the southward than to the northward, 
so that the harbors on the east coast of Newfoundland are alternately 
being opened and closed during the entire ice season, while those farther 
north remain permanently closed for more than half the year. Hudson 
Strait, for example, is open to navigation for about three months, from 
July to October, but there is never a time when ice may not be en- 
countered, and of such a heavy nature that a vessel can not force her 
way through it. 

This does not mean that a vessel can only enter during these months 
for open water exists at times in almost every month, but for such short 
intervals that it would be useless to depend upon it. 

As has been before stated, and from the foregoing remarks it will be 
seen that exact dates can not be given, and only approximate averages 
should be considered, and even these are often at fault from lack of 
data, and from conflicting reports which are given by those equally ex- 
perienced in ice. 

A table is appended showing a summary of observations wherever 
obtainable. 

Many interesting points bearing on the ice formation and its destruc- 
tion need only be referred to in this paper, as it is only intended to treat 
of ice as an obstruction to navigation. Much of the ice encountered 
at sea is discolored and often full of dirt and gravel, while not infre- 
quently stones are found imbedded in it. Along the shores of Labra- 
dor, where there is a large rise and fall in the tide, ice is brought in 
contact with the bottom, aud'mud and seaweed are frozen in with it, 
while at times land slides precipitate large quantities of dirt and stones 
on its surface. As the ice leaves the coast and comes to the southward 
it brings these burdens with it, which are deposited on the ocean bot- 
tom when the ice melts. As this melting occurs to a great extent over 
the Grand Banks, it would seem that the deposit from the field ice 
would be greater than that from bergs. It is hard to understand why 
bergs should have foreign substances frozen into them, as they are 
formed ifrom snow deposited on the frozen surfaces in the interior of 
Greenland, and hence their thickness is added to from their upper sur- 
face. It is possible that in their journey south in the Arctic current, 
they accumulate more or less foreign matter by having it ground into 
their bottoms, but this does not seem probable, as it is hard to force 



16 

gravel into ice and give it a permanent hold, while mud accumulated 
in this way would soon be washed out. Then, too, the largest bergs 
iind their way around the edges of the Banks and do not cross, on ac- 
count of their draft, for only an average size berg crosses the Banks. 

All field ice, no matter whether made near shore or at sea, when 
turned over shows a marked discoloration, which is called " foxy slime," 
yellowish red in color, which seems to rise from the bottom of the sea 
to the under surface of the ice. It is a well-known fact that the cod 
follow the Arctic ice down and feed under it, and the seals use it for 
breeding purposes. 

It is of interest to know that all ice is not formed on the surface 5 it 
has been known to freeze in 10 or 15 fathoms of water on the Labrador 
coast. Seal-nets are set in these depths, and often the seals are found 
frozen solid at a depth of 12 fathoms, while huge pieces of ice form 
around the killick with which the nets are anchored and bring them to 
the surface. These killicks are made of stone, so the formation takes 
place around them, and when a sufficient quantity has been frozen the 
whole mass rises to the surface. A very marked example of bottom 
freezing is recorded where a box of iron tools, which was lost from 
a ship crushed in the ice in Hudson Strait, was afterwards found off 
Nain solidly frozen in a mass of ice, which had formed at the bottom 
around it and buoyed it to the surface, whence tjhe current swept it to 
sea and landed it on the coast of Labrador, several hundred miles from 
where it was lost. 

It is said of Labrador fishermen, who often buoy their seal- nets, that 
when a buoy is used the nets freeze and rise to the surface, but when 
not buoyed they seldom rise, indicating that the ice follows down the 
buoy-rope and reaches the net in this way. It would appear that ice 
frozen on the bottom would thus have a better chance of incorporating 
foreign bodies, and may be the greatest bearer of such burdens to the 
Grand Banks. 

There can be no doubt that ice freezes on the bottom, for numerous 
instances are on record where vessels have observed it rise to the sur- 
face in open water, and a few instances where it has come up under a 
vessel, causing her to leak, or doing other damage. 

Having now briefly outlined the drift of ocean ice from its source to 
its position in paths of commerce, let us see what its movements then 
are, and the causes which lead to its destruction. 

From observations extending over a series of years it is shown that 
field ice reaches latitude 46° N. generally in February, varying from 
January to March* between the meridians of 46° and 50° W., while 
bergs reach the same locality from January to April. The marked ex- 
ception has been the present season, when bergs came down in Decem- 
ber, 1889, and field ice followed early in January. The drift of both 
bergs and field ice from this position during the month following the one 
in which they are first sighted will be about 200 miles south-southwest, 



17 

the mass at the same time spreading along its southern limit. Dar- 
ing the next month it will have reached the northern average limit of 
the Gulf Stream, and spread itself along this line, both east and west, 
when its destruction begins. 

After reaching its southern limit many bergs, from their deep sub- 
mersion, find their way to the westward, even when within the limits 
of the Gulf Stream, while field ice never follows this course. 

This is accounted for by the fact that the Arctic current runs under 
the Gulf Stream, and a thin tongue of the latter lies over it. Each year, 
as this ice comes down, it is followed by other ice, making the season 
of field ice about three and a half months long, the average time of its 
disappearance being in April or early May, while the season of bergs 
lasts about seven months. The time of disappearance of bergs is gen- 
erally from August until October 1. They have been reported as late as 
November, and, indeed, there is not a month in the year that they are 
not found in transatlantic routes in different years. 

There is one locality in which it appears that ice of all kinds is most 
apt to be found during the regular season, say from March to June, and 
that is between latitude 42° and 45° N., and longitude 47° and 52° W., 
and this is probably due to the fact that the Gulf Stream and Arctic 
current meet here, and it is influenced sometimes by one, sometimes by 
the other. Should it drift bodily into the Gulf Stream it will be carried 
to the eastward, while it will drift to the westward should it remain in 
the Arctic current. 

Many of the large bergs ground all around the edge of the Grand 
Banks, and those that round the extreme southern point in latitude 
43° N., longitude 50° W., under the influence of the northerly current, 
will, when the limits of the currents change, as they continually do, 
be swept to the northward and eastward and ground to the westward 
of the Banks. Numerous reports show this to be a well-recognized 
fact. 

There are wide variations in the times of appearance and disap- 
pearance of^oth bergs and field ice, as well as in their drift from 
year to year. Hardly any two seasons will be exactly similar but the 
above general rules will give averages. 

During th^ year 1889 hardly any reports were made of ice until April, 
when numerous bergs, but hardly any field ice, were reported from lati- 
tude 48° to 46° N., between longitude 44° and 49° W. During May a 
large increase in the number of bergs follows, extending from 49° to 46° 
N., between 42° and 50° W. In June, from 49° to 43° N., between 45° 
and 50° W. In July, from 49° to 44».° N., betweei*45° and 50° W. In 
August scarcely any was reported south of 50° N., while in September 
a mass of them was reported from 48° 30' to 46° N., between 46° and 50° 
W. In October a few reports show them within about the same limits 
as in September, while in Novemb'er they have almost disappeared, to 
be followed in December by quite a number from 49° to 46° N., between 
24475— No. 93 2 



46° and 53° W., which were the advanced ice of the present season's pro- 
lific output. 

From June till liTovember there were thousands of them in and 
around the Straits of Belle Isle, and the coast of Labrador was full of 
them. The year 1889 was analyzed at length, for it shows that last 
year's season has merged into that of the present year without showing 
any interval. This, however, is explained by the fact that ice did not 
appear in 1889 in any amount until April, owing possibly to the fact 
that the season of 1888 was a close one in the Arctic, and the drift of 
the bergs was very much interrupted and delayed, while in 1889 it was 
very open and the bergs of the one followed close on the heels of the 
other. We know that the coast of Labrador was not free of them dur- 
ing the entire year of 1889, so that the drift from the Arctic must 
have been continued for over a year. The Dundee whalers who spent 
the summer of 1889 in the Arctic reported a very open season there, 
with an unusually large number of bergs adrift, and predicted the early 
appearance and great number of bergs that have been seen since De- 
cember up to the present time, and it forms an interesting problem to 
follow out their theory. Unfortunately there are not enough data at 
hand to go deeply into the subject, but it would appear that an open 
summer in the Arctic would give an increase in the quantity and size 
of the bergs during the following spring and summer in low latitudes. 
In 1888 there were hardly any reports of ice other than in the Straits 
of Belle Isle and on the coast of Newfoundland, though a few reports 
show one or two bergs and a little field ice off soundings, but it is 
hardly worth mentioning, while in 1887 ice was continually present in 
transatlantic routes from February to August, inclusive. 

Of course in different years ice reaches a different southern limit, 
varying generally between 40° and 41° 30' N. Bergs will be found 
between 40° and 55° W., though both of these limits have been ex- 
ceeded during the present season, while field ice will be found as far as 
62° W., owing to the fact that the Gulf of St. Lawrence sends out such 
large quantities. 

The plottings on the accompanying charts were made from reports 
received at this Office, and the absence of ice above the latitude of 47° 
or 48° N. is accounted for by the fact that no reports were received from 
that region, though doubtless it was full of ice during the season. 

In the same way many of the bays and coast of ^Newfoundland were 
full of ice, as well as the Gulf of St. Lawrence, but few reports were re- 
ceived, owing to the absence of traffic in these parts. The year 1885 is 
taken as a fair exanaple, though a few bergs may reach a little farther 
to the eastward than usual, and do not spread quite as far to the west- 
ward as the general average. 

The deductions drawn as to the drift of ice off soundings have been 
made from plottings, each mass representing the reports for a month, 
so by comparing these the above rules were laid down. 



19 

It will be seen from the accompanying charts how important it is 
that all vessels should send reports immediately on their arrival in 
port of all ice sighted to some central office, where the observations 
can be platted and recorded in a graphic form, for from these alone 
can predictions be made. All authentic reports from newspapers, 
and from other reliable sources should be utilized, and those which 
would prove invaluable would be from light-house keepers in New- 
foundland and Labrador or others on shore, who keep a good record 
of all ice sighted. Telegraphic reports from northern ports or quick 
mail facilities will give good results in ample time, but all should go to 
a central office. 

The Hydrographic Office has solicited extensive co-operation on the 
part of all who would be likely to sight ice, and especially by those who 
spend the season in ice regions, and the future should bear excellent 
results. 

To this end, a special ice form was prepared and distributed to the 
iTewfoundland sealers, who leave each year on March 10 for the sealing 
grounds, and who will be the first to sight the heavy Arctic field-ice ; 
to whalers, and the northern fishing fleet. Some of these vessels after 
the sealing season go to the Arctic whaling grounds and return to port 
late in the fall, and their reports will be very valuable since they will 
show the state of the ice in high latitudes. 

Arrangements have been made with the light-house keepers of New- 
foundland, with many of the Newfoundland and Nova Scotia fishing 
fleet, and many others, to keep these ice forms and send them to this 
Office as fast as filled, and in this way an excellent record can be kept 
of the ice from the time it reaches Cape Chidley until it disappears in 
low latitudes. 

It is unnecessary to dwell upon the importance of the ice problem, or 
to comment upon the good it will do when more fully understood, as 
all who encounter it appreciate it already. It stands to reason that the 
more reports that can be gotten the better will be the predictions. 
Heretofore almost every report received came from the transatlantic 
steamers, but in future we hope to secure hundreds of other observers, 
which, with our old ones, will enable a good showing to be made and 
produce excellent results. 

The Canadian weather service has established a number of stations 
in and around Hudson Strait, and though only a few years have elapsed 
since they were started, they are already doing a great deal of good. 
An important factor in ice observations will be a record of prevailing 
winds, their force and direction, and current observations. All of these 
will necessarily be used in making predictions, and temperature of both 
atmosphere and of the water, on the surface and below, will be very 
valuable. 

The benefit of these will inure to those who make the observations, 
for thousands of dollars would annually be saved if vessels could know 



20 

the positiou of ice before leaving port and steer a course that would 
keep them clear of it. A rough estimate of the amount saved in coal 
alone, resulting from delays due to ice, would be over $100,000 per an- 
num, nofc to mention damage or loss of vessel. 

Each month on the North Atlantic Pilot Chart the ice for the previous 
month is plotted and a course laid down to clear it, which, though 
some 200 miles longer than the great circle routes from side to side, is 
the most economical course that can be followed. This takes vessels 
not only south of the ice region, but an inspection of the charts will 
show that it generally clears the fog limit, which is specially dangerous 
in the ice season. 

Many vessels have been delayed from a few hours to several days by 
ice this season from running too far to the northward, while a number 
have received serious damage, and a few have been lost. A list, which 
is not complete by any means, is appended showing the number of ves- 
sels which have been damaged by ice, and it is safe to say that as many 
more have been injured of which no report was made public. It^ will 
be noticed that few fishing vessels or coasters are mentioned in this list; 
if they were it would be triple the length it is now. 

It is true that many vessels find their interests in the ice-pack, and 
in the waters where it is most prevalent, but it should be remembered 
'that they are built and strengthened for this work. A wooden ship 
can venture into it5e-fields which would be fatal to one of iron, but if an 
iron ship be strengthened in her bows, and have a sheathing of wood 
on the outside, extending several feet above the water-line, she can then 
venture more boldly into an ice-field. Iron plates in contact with ice 
are easily cracked, and a weak bow is stove in, showing the imperative 
necessity of strong water-tight bulk-heads forward. Many a vessel 
has been saved by these alone. Naturally a short vessel which answers 
her helm readily will have a better chance of avoiding ice-pans than a 
longer one that is sluggish after the helm has been put over, and small 
wooden schooners make safe passage through fields that would cause the 
loss of the largest and best ocean steamers should they venture on the 
same track. Much damage and loss of property is annually incurred 
by the fishing fleet which anchors on the Banks, and from these vessels 
many valuable reports have been received on the movements of bergs 
and fields, which are accurate from the fact that the observations were 
taken from a fixed position. 

Frequently a vessel at anchor sights a field coming down on her, say 
from the northward, which is not heavy enough to necessitate getting 
up anchor. This field may drift entirely past, and with a southerly 
wind springing up in the mean time, will drift back to the northward 
again. Fields have been observed to come from every direction, de- 
pending upon current when there is no wind, but following the re- 
sultant of wind and current with a moderate breeze. 

Fields in drifting past vessels chafe their sides and some cut through, 



21 

frequently carry away rudders and do other damage. To the trawlers 
who have their dories out, especially in thick weather, ice-fields cause 
not only loss of property but loss of life, for it is often impossible to 
haul the dories back to the vessel, whereupon they are carried away 
before the ice and the fishernien meet their death from hunger and 
exposure. Should any doubt exist as to whether a vessel can hold 
when a field of ice is drifting down on her it is better to slip the cable 
and run than to take any chances. Small bergs cause damage too by 
drifting down on vessels at anchor, so a sharp lookout is always nec- 
essary during the ice season. Fish^ermen sometimes take advantage 
of the presence of bergs to lay in a supply of ice for preserving their 

fish. 

The submarine cables are laid in deep water and not across the Banks, 
for should a berg ground and come in contact with a cable it would be 
broken at once. 

It has been shown how bergs go to pieces, so it will not be necessary 
to refer to them again. A high temperature will soften field ice and 
make it very rotten, so that the slightest motion will cause it to fall to 
pieces. On reaching the waters of the Gulf Stream, or a warmer at- 
mospheric temperature, it begins to melt, gets soft and spongy, and 
left in a calm will disappear slowly. But, fortunately, there is seldom 
a time when there is not a swell on the sea. and this soon breaks the 
pans into small pieces, thus bringing a greater surface in contact with 
the meltiug agency. A heavy gale will in a few hours sometimes cause 
the destruction of a large field by fracture, friction, and continued mo- 
tion, just as a calm cold night may unite it in a solid mass. Bergs plow 
their way through fields, break them up, and scatter the pieces, as 
in the Arctic. Snow preserves them, and often gives the pans the ap- 
pearance of standing well out of water, and is misleading in this par- 
ticular. By melting and afterwards freezing it adds to the thickness 
of the ice. 

Before ice is seen from deck the ice blink will often indicate its pres- 
ence. This is readily understood when it is known that it is caused by 
the reflection of the rays of light from the sun or moon. On a clear 
day over the ice on the horizon the sky will be much paler or lighter in 
color and is easily distinguishable from that overhead, so that a sharp 
lookout should be kept and changes in the color of the sky noted. 
Should a vessel not follow the routes laid down by this Office during the 
ice season and finds herself in the ice, it will often be a saving in time 
to at once run to the southward or along the trend of the ice-field and 
round the southern edge, unless a lead can be found through the field. 
The edges of the field will probably not be found to be uniform in shape, 
but tongues and cajies may extend out in many places, so that it is bet- 
ter to give it a wide berth. 

The great danger in attempting to stand through ice lies in the fact 
that a gale may come up before the ice is cleared, and cause the ice to 



22 

have such a heavy motion that the bows may be stove in, rudder carried 
away, or pieces of ice be thrown on deck, or do other damage. 

It would seem that underwriters should give better rates to those 
vessels that keep clear of ice and fog, and the saving in this alone 
might make up for the expenditure of coal necessary to follow the safer 
route. 

Hugh Rodman, 
Unsign, U. S. Navy. 



APPENDIX. 



DISASTERS DUE TO ICE. 

The following is a partial list of disasters in the North Atlantic due to ice. 

1882. 

Esquimaux, February 28. — The whaling steamer Esquimaux arrived at St. John's, 
Newfoundland, and reports having been thirteen days among vast fields of ice that 
stretched southeast and south over 200 miles from the Newfoundland coast. The pack 
caught her tightly, and she remained in it until she drifted up to St. John's Harbor. 
At last accounts five steam whalers were visible from Cape Spear locked in the ice 
and drifting helplessly southward. 

Limosa, March 19. — The steam-ship Limosa passed through a heavy field of ice and 
stove in starboard bow. 

Bialto, March 29. — The steam-ship Eialto ran into a field of ice and stove in both 
bows; Lad to steer southeast for 200 miles to clear ice. 

Newfoundland, March 27. — The steam-ship ^eiq/'oM?idZarid reports two vessels jammed 
in the ice 30 miles southwest of Cape Pine. 

Proviise, March 31. — The schooner Promise was struck by a large ice-floe and sunk. 

Hermod, April 8. — The steam-ship Hermod, in latitude 45° 20' N., longitude 48° W., 
was surrounded by ice. During a northeast gale and heavy swell ice began to move 
and stove in bows, filling forward compartments. Bergs all around vessel. 

May 10. — Telegrams from St. John's state that there are forty-five sailing vessels 
and eight steamers caught in the ice in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. 

Peruvian, May 19. — The steam-ship Peruvian, with 1,000 passengers on board, dis- 
abled and locked in the ice at entrance to Gulf of St. Lawrence; in dangerous posi- 
tion ; fears are entertained for her safety. 

Montreal, May 20. — The steam-ship Montreal was hemmed in by ice in Gulf of St. 
Lawrence for nine days ; got clear by passengers and crew cutting an opening. 

Harry Wetmore, May 21. — The whaling schooner Rarry Wetmore reported twenty- 
one ships locked in ice north of Cape Eay, and two ocean steamers between Capes 
Kay and Anguille. 

Ashdrulal, June 21. — The steam-ship Ashdrubal struck a berg 20 miles off Cape Race 
and sunk. 

1883. 

Violet, February 19 — The steamship Violet, when 40 miles east of Louisburg, Cape 
Breton Island, encountered heavy drift ice. Drifted about in ice for eleven days, 
during which time a large hole about 6 feet long was knocked in her starboard bow. 
Arrived at Halifax March 4, forward compartment full of water. 

General Birch, March 15 — The bark General Birch, was found fast in the ice in lati- 
tude 45° N., longitude 48° 30' W., with bows stove in, vessel abandoned and full of 
water. 

Chnstel, March 17— The bark Christel, from latitude 47° 20' N., longitude 46° 20' W., 
to latitude 44° 43' N., longitude 50° 59' W., had considerable metal torn off by ice. 

23 



24 

Nettlewortli, April 7 — The steam-ship NettlewortJi returned to North Sidney, having 
had bows stove in by ice off Cape Eace Eocks. 

Zambesi, May 5 — The ship Zambesi when 16 miles §S Scatari, Cape Breton, struck 
heavy ice; stove in bows and sank in twenty minutes. 

June 7 — Eeport from St. John's, Newfoundland, states that thirty sealing schooners 
are fast in the ice in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, in northern part. 

Barcelona, July 17 — The steam-ship Barcelona, when 100 miles east of Anticosti, 
collided with an iceberg, crushing in the whole of her bows 2 feet above water line. 

1884. 

Notting Hill, January 2 — The steaci-ship Netting Hill collided with an iceberg ; was 
so seriously damaged that she was abandoned January 5, in latitude 46° N., longitude 
46° 20' W. 

Gloucester, February 24 — The steam-ship Gloucester, when south of the Banks, had 
port bow damaged by ice. 

George Peabody, February 23 — The bark George Pealody, in latitude 42° 22' N., lon- 
gitude 48° 57' W., was abandoned with bows stove in and rudder damaged by ice. 

1885. 

Bipon City, February 16.— The steam-ship Bipon City, when in latitude 45° 30' N., 
longitude 48° W., in ice-fields, had bow-plates cracked, and had to put into Halifax, 

Sussex, February 18. — The steam-ship Sussex, in latitude 45° 30' N., longitude 48° W., 
struck a large cake of ice and stove in bows. ^ 

Marance, April 5.— The bark Marance, in latitude 46° 30' N., longitude 45° 54' W., 
was crushed in an ice-floe and sunk. 

Young Prince, April 19. — The New foundland sealer Young Prince collided with an 
iceberg in Gulf of St. Lawrence and sunk almost immediately. 

Moen, May 1. — The bark Moen in latitude 46° N., longitude 45° W., collided with a 
"berg and foundered. 

Cilurum, May 5.— The steam-ship Cilurum, when in latitude 45° N., longitude 47° 
W., collided with a berg and stove in bows. 

Bayard, May 6.— The bark Bayard, when in latitude 46° N., longitude 48° W., col- 
lided with berg and was abandoned. 

Magdalena, May 6. — The bark Magdalena, when in latitude 45° N., longitude 47° 
W., collided with a berg and was abandoned. 

Annie Christine, May 7. — The brig Annie Christine on Grand Banks struck a berg and 
foundered. 

Mary Louisa, May 10. — The steam-ship Mary Louisa, in latitude 49° N., longitude 
46° W., fell in with heavyice, which crushed her plates; foundered. 

Jeranos, May 9. — The steam-ship Jeranos, from Rotterdam to Montreal, put into 
North Sydney, Cape Breton, having collided with a berg and knocked a hole in the 
how. 

City of Berlin, May 19. — The steam-ship City of Berlin, in latitude 43° 30' N., longi- 
tude 49° 30' W., struck a berg and carried away bowsprit and head-work. 

1886. 

Lady Agnes, September 20. — The schooner Lady Agnes, when 60 miles east of St, 
John's, Newfoundland, collided with berg, badly damaged ; drifted about helplessly 
for seven days, finally reached St. John's, 

1887. 

Germania, March 5.— The steam-ship Germania, in latitude 48° 09' N., longitude 46° 
12' W., from this position southward for four days, ran through heavy ice interspersed 
yrith bergs and sustained considerable damage. 



25 

Hartville, March 11.— The steam-sliip Hartville, in latitude 43° 20' N., longitude 47° 
W., collided -with berg and sustained damage. 

Frank A. Williama, March 20. — The schooner Frank A. Williavis surrounded by ice 
20 miles southeast of Sable Island ; the pack caused her to leak badly. 

Newfoundland, If arcZt 24.— The steam-ship Newfoundland, when off Cape Race fell 
in with heavy ice-field and damaged bow. 

1888. 

Dove, June 12 — The schooner Dove was crushed by ice oft" St. John's. 

1889. 

Saale, June 11. — The steam-ship Saale, in latitude 42° 54' N., longitude 49° 54' W., 
during thick weather collided with berg, but not damaged. 

1890. 

Nessmore, January 13. — The steam-ship Nessmore collided with berg ; damaged bows j 
narrowly escaped destruction. 

Washington City, January 28. — The steam-ship Washington City was in ice at inter- 
vals between latitude 47° 45' N., longitude 48° 26' W., to latitude 44° 45' N., longi- 
tude 51° 42' W. ; damaged several bow-plates and filled forward compartment with 
water. 

Gillett, January 29. — The steam-ship Gillett, between latitude 46° 50' N., longitude 
46° 45' W., and latitude 45° 32' N., longitude 48° 15' W., collided with ice and knocked 
two holes in her bows. 

Mareca, February 1 to 4. — The steam-ship Mareca, between latitude 49° N., longitude 
49° 19' W. , and latitude 43° 17' N. , longitude 50° 36' W. , had two plates bent in starboard 
bow. 

Oliver Emery, February 5. — The bark Oliver Emery, in latitude 45° 15' N., longitude 
48° 14' W., had been in ice-pack thirty hours, when supplied with provisions by the 
steam-ship Amsterdam. She had lost a piece of her stern and was leaking badly. 

Miranda, February 5. — The steam-ship Miranda, from St. John's, Newfoundland, to 
Halifax, Nova Scotia, broke the wood lock of her rudder and damaged several bow- 
plates while in heavy ice. 

Caroline, Febrtiary 12 to 14. — The brig Caroline, latitude 43° 55' N., longitude 60° 
10' W., had stern badly damaged and sides scraped by field ice. 

Meteor, February 17. — The bark Meteor spent nine days in an immense ice-field south 
of Cape Race. The ice smashed in her bows, carried away the rudder, and opened her 
seams. Crew rescued in an exhausted condition by the steam-ship Marengo in lati- 
tude 43° 7' N., longitude 48° 54' W. 

Conscript, February 22. — The steam-ship Conscript, from St. John's, Newfoundland, to 
Halifax, Nova Scotia, stripped the sheathing from her bows in heavy field ice. 

Tynedale, February 22. — The steam-ship Tynedale, in latitude 46° 52' N., longitude 
47° W., was imprisoned in thence three days. Started her bow-plates and caused a 
bad leak in her collision bulk-head. 

Minister Maybaeh, February 22. — The steam-ship Minister Maybaeh, in latitude 46° 
30' N., longitude 46° 44' W., steamed through ice-field eighteen hours ; started rivets 
in her bow-plates, causing leak in her forward compartment. 

Wild Flower, February — . — The steam-ship Wild Flower, 300 miles east of Cape Race, 
encountered ice, stove in several bow-plates, and filled forward compartment with 
water. 

India, February — . — The steam-ship /n<2ia, from Baltimore to Hamburg, was damaged 
by ice. 

Silvia, February —.—The steam-ship Silvia, latitude 44° 30' N., longitude 48° 10' W., 
was six days in the ice ; had copper and planking badly damaged. 



26 

North Cambria, March 1 to 3. — The steam-sliip North Canibria, between latitude 45<^ 
11' N., longitude 47° 31' W., and latitude 43° 16' N., longitude 49^ 30' W., collided 
with ice during fog ; stove in a plate on eacli bow and filled forward compartment; 
narrowly escaped collision with large berg near the last position. 

Volunteer, March 10. — The steam-ship Volunteer, from St. John's, Newfoundland, for 
Halifax, Nova Scotia, met heavy ice 40 miles from St. John's ; had to steer 125 miles 
to the southward to clear it ; tore off one of her bow-plates. 

Lizzie J. Greenleaf, March — . — The schooner Lizzie J. Greenleaf, while at anchor on 
the Grand Bank, had to cut her cable, and lost 100 fathoms of chain, to avoid an ice- 
berg that was drifting down on her. 

Kestel, March — . — The schooner Kestel, from St. John's, Newfoundland, for Bristol, 
encountered field ice and damaged sheathing. 

Esquimaux, March — , — The sealing steam-ship Esquimaux, when northeast of Fogo 
Island, jammed in heavy ice, damaged bows, and had to return to port. 

Strait of Gibraltar, April — . — The steam-ship Strait of Gibraltar, from London to 
New York, put into Louisburg damaged by ice. She was leaking so badly that she 
had to be grounded to keep her from sinking. 

Magdalena, April 16. — The bark Magdalena, in latitude 44° 40' N., longitude 39° 
W., collided with a berg and was abandoned. Her crew was taken off by the steam- 
ship Umbria. 

Ice in transatlantic routes. 





Field ice. 


Field ice. 


Bergs. 


Bergs. 




Appeared. 


Disappeared. 


Appeared. 


Disappeared. 


1882 


Fetrnary 

do 




February 

. do 


August. 
September. 
Do. 


1883 




1884* 


do 


.do 


do 


1885 


. . do . ... 




do 




1886 


do 


do 






1887 


do 




February 


September. 


1888t 


...do 




1889 






. do 

December, 1889.. 




1890 


Jannary 











* Kevrfoundland coast, full till October. 

t Very little ice in transatlantic routes ; coast of Newfoundland full. 



ORT8. 



I essel after 



f years . 



Ooinplettl.v or partially 
closed. 



At intervals 

At intervals by field ice 

At intervals by field ice, 
BLDVer by harbor ice. 

A vciac;e 3 months each year 
closed. 

Completely at times 

Some years at intervals, 
other years completely. 

Couipletely ". 

do 



-do 
-do 
-do 



At intervals until Fob. 1. 



Completely . 
do 



.do 
-do 
-do 

.do 
-do 

.do 



Generally in motion all win- 
ter 
Completely at intervals. 



Occasionally obstructed by 

field ice. 



Interval, ii 



Jan. 1 to .^ 

Southwesi 

winter. 



Jan. to Aj 

Jan. 15 to i 
Jan. 20 to J 

Jan. to Ap 
Dec. 20 to . 

Dec. 10 to . 
Jan. 1 to A 
Dec 10 to 

place op« 
Completely 

May 1. 

Jan. 14 to J 
Jan. 9 to A] 

Dec. 8 to A 
Earlv in D 

Early in Dl 

Dec. 10 to 1 
Dec. 15 to 1 
Dec. 25 to I 
Jan. 1 to A 

Navigation 
Dec. 10 
paths ard 
of the tis 



Dec. 17 to May 10 . 

Completely 

do -.1 



Jan. 1 to A] 
Dec. to Ma^ 



Completely ] Dec.toMaji 

flo Jan. 22 to .4 

rio ' T.._ ^J.- 



AVERAGE TUVKR OP OPENING AND CLOSING OF POUTa. 



Port Hawkenbury, Cape Breton 

Loniabnrg Harbor (uorthcaat arm), Cape i 

Cow Hay. Cape Breton 

Sydney, Cape Broton 



Siinimei>-i,le, I'riit.-eE.lwanl Ishind ... 
Casiiin)piqiie, Princ- Echviir.! Island -. 
Kichuioii.l Jtay, Prince Edward laland . 

Malpiqne, Prince Edward laland 

Sonria, Prince Edward Island 



Shediac, New Brunswick 

Miraniichi Bay. New Brunswick 
SLippigan, New Brunswick , 

Caraqnette, New Brnnswick 



Capo Magdelen, Quebec 
father Point, Qaebeo... 



Feb. 3. 1886 

Rarely Creoeos ; tbree tiniea 

in last 23 years, 
Jan. 14, 1886 

Jan. 15 to Fob. 1.. 

Jan. 22 ;.";, 

DiH-.U 

About Dec. is"" !!""""" 
Not until closed by field ice 

Jan.4tfll0 

Dec. 26 

Decs , 

D.^c.5 ' 

Dec. 8 , 



Apr.23.1886 , 

Brakes up with aoutlierly 

None except in docks 

Apr.20, 1886 , 

Apr. 15 to May 1 

Apr.l3 : 

Apr.21 



An-ival of Hold i 



Feb. 3, ISfiii 

AiioutMftr.17-... 

Feb. 15 to 28 

Generally in Jnn . . 
Jan. IB to Feb. 1... 



Aiir.C, 18.SG .'...".... Jaii 4, 1887 .'""1 !!!"'!!"!! 

About Apr. 1 ; bay ieooften Apr.lj.drives back barbor 

thick and hard on May ■• *<"» 

May! 



St Pierre 

St Panl'fl Island 

Amherst, S. Magdalen Island 

Anhr..>,ti, Southwest Point 

Cape Nonuan. Newfound la ml 

Canada Eav, Newfoundland 

Wbite Bay' (western arm). Nt-wfoumll:i 



Exploits Bamt Island, Newfoundland . 
Toulinguet, Newfoundland 



Once In 40 years . 



Feb. to Mar., floating i 



..[ May 10.. 



Dec.25to Jan. 10 . 



Greenspond, Newfound' 






Bonavista Harbor, Newfoundland Jan. 20. 

Trinity Harbor, Newfoundland Jan, 31 .. 



Harbor Grace, Now fonnd land.. 



St Jolin'8 Harbor, Newfoundland . . 

Ferry land, Newfoondland 

Cape Kace, Newfoundland 

TrepasseyHarbor.Newfoundland . 
Flacentia, NewfoQodland 



LaiDelin Harbor, Newfoundland . 



Grand Bank, Newfoundland 

Harbor Breton, Newfoundland . 



La Huse Bay, Newfoundland . 
Burgro. Newfoundland , 



LaPoile Harbor, Newfoundland . 
Cbannel, Newfoundland 



Disappearance of field i. 



Varies; about Ma 
With westerly wi 
Apr. 15 to May 1.. 

End of Apr 



May 15 

Apr. 1 to May 1. 



....do , 

....do 

Deo- 0, mean of 4 years 



abont Feb. 1. 
Jan.lu to Feb. 20. 



Feb, 20, averaging 



ionally blocked by 



iiionally blocke 



Cater anchora.e seldor 
frozen for more tban 2o 
3 days. Innrr aii<b.-r.-iir 



Rarely frozen., 
Dec. 26 



Mar. 20. 
Mar. 25 . 



Mar. 4 to May 23, averaging 



Feb. 15; depends npoQ wind 
Jan. 1.5 






Jan. 18.. 
Jan. 14., 
Mar.'ii"! 



eof last vessel be- 



About F<.b, 1 . 



Middh«ol"l)eo.: 



Riroly r 

of time 

May 21.. 

May 12 . 



s Apr.20 



May 1 



3 10. 



May 1 to 20 , 

May 25 

Mayl to Jimol.. 
May"u".".".l!*"r,i; 



Feb. 15 May 20.. 

Apr. 19 Apr. 29.. 



Jan.20t«Feb.20.. 



enter bv April. 
MoveK oO' with nor( 

wind, and dinappen 

April. 
Mar.20 , 



Jan. to Feb. 15 

10 to Apr. 10,1 



Rarelyany, only with soatli- 
erly wiml aftiir ice has 
ronnded Cape Knee. 



About Mar. 1 . 
Feb. 20 



I'ob. (rare occurrence) Apr. 



rMay 



Arrival of first VcBsel after 



Generally in Mat.. 

Apr.24,lP88 

May 1 

Apr.24 

Api-rVe -. 

Apr. 24 



Apr.20 . 

Apr. 30 . 

May?-.. 
May 21.. 



Apr. 20 
Apr.24, 



oMayl 

iiean of 7 years . 



Open at all spoaons 

Dec. 13 Apr. 18.. 



Deo. 20.. 
Jan. 28.. 



Abont Apr. ]., 
Mar.26 



ifewdaya in Feb. and 



Dec. 24.. 
Den. 15. . 



Open at (Ul eeaaons 

Ari'iveanddepartatail s 



Navigation nearly always 

open in bay. 
fienorally open all the year 



May 1 (at intarvals alt \ 
ter). 



At intorvnifl by fiebi i(?o ^ 

At iiitiTv.'iIrt l,y Hytdii 



Completely at iutoiTals. 



Occasionnlly obstructed by 



t 2 feet-. 



Dec 10 loMayl-'sh 



talSli'"- 



May 6 



J;m. 1 to Apr. 25 

Nav 
Dt„. ,. „„„ ^^.. ^„, 
paths are open about half 
of the time. 



Mar. 3 . 
Apr. 30 



At intervals from Jan. £0 

At intervals; after twenty- 
fonr boura of southwest 



At intervals from Jan. 20 t 
JUar. 20. 

At intervals by field ice. . - 



At intervals by field ice 



At intorvata from Mar. I t 

20. 
At intervals by field ieo . . 

Completely 



Jan. 19 to Apr. 2*^ 

Comiiletely from Fob. 8 t 
Mar. 9, at intervals froi 



Northeaatarm 6 to 12ineiH'i 

Harbor ice about 4 inches. 

6 to 10 inches 

ISinobos.. 

do 

do 

12 to 18 innhcs 

12 inches 

5 to 12 inches 

Abouta feet 



20 to 25 inches . 



10 to 20 inches 

Ordinary field ico.. 



ISiiichen .. 
2 to 3 foet!! 



Ifoot 

ISinohea.. 



) 15 inches . 
) 18 tnohea . 



Feb. 20 to Mar. 25 . 



Harbor ice 1 or 2 inol 



nnd records of previous 



24475— No. 93— face iJ. 26 



Record 23 years, open generally all 
the year round. 

Mean of 30 years. 

Mean of 13 years' closing; remainder 

mean of 33 yoare. 
Ihlean of 6 years. 

Mean of 12 years. 

Mean of 16 jears. 

Mean of 5 .years; ferrr-boat ran in 
track except from Feb, 5 to 16. 

lean of 5 years, 

lean of 68 years. 

Mean of 5 years. 
Mean of 12 years. 



hoQE sufficient i 



Mean of 9 years ; heavy ice from abont 
Feb. 15 to Apr. 20. 

Mean of 36 years. 

Field ice has remained until Jnly 1 
and has disappeared by Apr. 10. 

Mean of i years; sealing steamers en- 



all montb:^, other i 
aaionally enter. 
Open at intervals between Apr. 1 and 
May 20 



Mean of 10 years 



N.'\vi;j;ation closed only .1 



Never frozen until anivi.l of field ii 




2 



60" 




^^ 




50- 


— 


— 





















^ 


50- 


^ 


























March, iSSq. 

4iA ICEBERGS. 
\:i^ FIELD ICE. 




1 


^ 


5 i 




















CSU 




U 
































A 


^ 
































^ 




7 


& i 






























/ 


J 






























40 



]%^L^ 


»c wr o ,)» I, ,, A,N I) ^ 


H 


If 


^ 


'■""i 


























■- " " 




^ 


9 


1- 
















"\ 










^1 


I 




i. 


■'""' ! 


't^ 


r 










': * 






-JZ- 










• 




..., 


1 
i 


.-.._ 


— 




— - 




* 


f» 


..... 






.... 




















4 - 

^w^;. A 


A 






















1 


-i-" 




vt: r^^ 


^ 




































-. 
























































60- 




50' 


4 



40° 









1 





Se 


PTEMBER 


, 1885. 








. 11 














44a icebergs. 

-.vv." FIELD ICE. 






{ I 




















































































?5 

■ir4 


!•"•':■ 




-^1 


A 












'i. 


f 


















X 






.-■^-A. 




'*...■■"•■'' 














-4^' 

\--' 


^ 
















^ 
















































































t ^ 


I — 










i 




■■ 1 



30° 



40* 



40 



t NONIIII MTIM CO.. WWTO-IITMO . WWHIWOTW, 




^ 


i# 






















1 


June, .885. 


p^ 


4 


"^ 


1 


















1 \ 


U4 ICEBERGS, 
A'J' FIELD ICE. 




u 


























1 


^^ r-4 


:'!H 
























~l II 


^CW 


7 '^-'% 






A 


,/i 


-/♦ 1';^ 






















"^ 
































I ^ 


2/ ^' \ -^ 


y 


1, 




A 


- 




^:fe. 




A 1 

1 "^ 










% 




*s^ 


,4^*^ 


^ 


m 


7^.^- 


iS; 


At 




-(^ 


/{■■-v 










"\ 


V'- 


i. 


^ 1 


4 


- 






















-— 


— - 


I.. 


"■'\ 


zr--p- 


=. 


— 


— - 


— - 


— - 


L^ 


,_...^<— 




— - 


A 

"it" 


— - 


■ ^!4S, 




















9. 


i. 
















:^"?^::^u:4i;'^ 
































A 




















A 




j^.^ 4v 










■ = 40 




^ 




— 






'^Cf 














40 



40° 



July, 1885. 

444 ICEBEROS. 
t4j<^v»- FIELD ICE. 






50 



40 
40 




40° 



: 


i October, 


1885. 






-..Vv'i^' FIELD ICE. 
































































/■••■••. 












■J.. .••"-■' 












1 




























































1 












50 



40* 
40 




7>. 



■0 


N010N,HS,» 


C,H.nH,iOHd 


■ 0= 9.313. 




















1 


F=^ 








-^ 


















-9- 
















V 




















^ 


■V- 


■i 












t- 


^^ 


^ \ 


















v 




















T 










-V- 








# 
^^- 

-■^-r:- 

-^^ 




















" 










Vv 




■?-, 


i> 


T-5 
















i 


^ ; 


-V" 


f" « 












^\ (\ 








T3 










■-..r' 














































v4: 


.09 


















^ 






•301 G 


naij 


H-^rK 














.( 


soaaaaoi 'Wt 






















J88I 'H3>IV]^ i 




.0^ 


— ■ 






.... 










% 

















40" 1 


1 April, 1885. 

1 J44 ICEBERGS. 
I t^^^^' FIELD ICE. 


30° 
































\^ 










P" 










r-:. 














^^' 


A- 






-I 


^ 




a. 




.A. 


A. 


M. 


-a. 


-AA. 


40' 










-A- 






































4 




60' 



5 




November, 1885. 

AiA ICEBERGS. 
■,V.VJ' FIELD ICE. 




-^4- ^14; 



a 




^ '. -A.A4- 



40' 






M(. 






i^^**' 



^; 






^ 



-A-44- 



•^ 






1^ 



^^!b 



4, 
-A, 



M. 



'-.AM 



^V> 



,-&^ 



^ 






^ 
^^^ 



June, 1885. 

444 ICEBERGS. 
'[\fA.'y FIELD ICE. 






A^fe^ 






.^^< 



AjA 



50° 



4or 



40 



, ,npaRV OF CONGRESS 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



029 714 167 3 i 



